Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Lemon Basil Martini

 

    Summer is still in full swing, and the herb garden is still producing wonderfully, fragrant and tasty herbs for all our guests to enjoy.  Our ultimate favorite summer herb is basil, so we had to feature it one more time in a cocktail before we pulled them out to wait for the next year's growth.  Let me tell you, the basil in this month's drink packs a punch and really shines.

    We typically plant three or four varieties of basil each year.  Two of our favorites that we use regularly are purple basil and the traditional sweet basil.  These two are the varietals we are featuring is this month's cocktail.  You will notice in our images, that the liquid has a pink tint, this is due to the use of purple basil.  The muddling process broke down the leaves which emitted a color when mixed with the liquid ingredients.  The entire process really made the drink stand out.

    The beautiful part of this drink is how easy it is to make and consume.  If you are a fan of vodka this basil martini is for you.

Lemon Basil Martini

6-10 basil leaves

3/4 ounce simple syrup

3/4 ounce fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 ounces vodka 

Ice

Rim your martini glass with lemon sugar, before starting your drink.  Muddle the basil leaves at the bottom of a shaker cup.  Add all the liquid and ice.  Shake vigorously until the shaker cup is very cold.  Pour contents into the prepared glass.  Garnish with lemon wedge and fresh basil.  

    The lemon basil martini is so easy to make and even easier to consume.  Take time while you are at the Tipsy Oak Lounge to enjoy this cocktail of the month, with friends. You are sure to enjoy the flavor and mix of this cocktail.

    As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver.  We hope that you will share with us your versions of this drink or join us to have one.  Cheers from the Oaks bed and breakfast. 

Events at The Oaks ~ Meet and Greet

 

    The Texas House race is heating up and candidates are out and meeting constituents all over Hopkins County.  We opened our doors for a meet and greet for House hopeful Brent Money hosted by Down to Earth Services.  Members of the public were invited to stop by and see what Mr. Money had to say about his platform and discover if he is the right candidate for them.  

    Brent Money is a local business owner in Hopkins County and Sulphur Springs, with a title and law office located off of Broadway, close to the Urgent Care facility.  He is the proud father of five children, and has been married for over 23 years, to his high school sweetheart.  A sixth generation Texan and Hunt County resident, he feels that he has a pulse of what the people want and plans to help put forward the issues that matter to local area residents for the State of Texas as a member of the House. 

    Mr. Money hopes to put "people" back into politics by supporting the publics right to make their own decisions for their family.  "We need someone who will fight for common sense Texas values as this district’s representative." (https://www.brentmoney.com/) He plans to lead this new position by his faith and values and use his talents that has been given to him from God. 

    Mr. Money has focused on appealing to many of the major pain points many Texans feel are their rights and values as individuals in the State.  The following are the some of the platforms he plans to stand up for as a member of the Texas House.  These are the values he plans to fight for such as border security, election integrity, property taxes, right to life, second amendment, parental rights, education and justice for all.  

    If you did not have a chance to attend this event, we encourage you to find an event and meet the candidates who are running to figure out who will be the best fit for you and your values.  Be sure to check out any forms of social media or his website for more information about his candidacy and be on the look out for his next public appearance.

    Guests enjoyed small bites and drinks while visiting with Mr. Money.  Pulled Pork Sliders, Cucumber bites and Profiteroles were just to name a few.  We try to make your event as seamless and easy as possible and of course delicious. 

    

Your Garden ~ Recycling

 

    We  have to send a huge shot out to D6 for their innovative use of a container pod in the Walmart parking lot. The pod allows residents to recycle certain parts of their household trash, to be recreated into a new product.  Sulphur Springs has been missing this key part of sustainable life for years and with the help of D6, and partnered companies, together they are making strides to reduce waste in our landfills and help create a better future for generations to come.  

    The new recycling hub has eight options for people to select and separate their waste.  Which means a little bit of pre-work goes a long way into making it easy to reuse the products you, as a consumer, have already used.  The easiest items to recycle are the items with a 1 on the plastic.  This pod has two options for the 1 recycling to enter.  With the help of images and words consumers can easily separate their items for a faster process to recycle.  

    The pod also takes aluminum cans, pet food packaging, paper boxes (cereal boxes) and plastic bags.  With so many options avaible, and a little bit of help from consumers this program will make a huge impact on  how much waste is put back into the landfill.  On average a plastic bottle takes 450 years to breakdown.  Where as if you were to recycle that same bottle in less than 6 months it could be back into circulation and made into a new product.

    Where as aluminum cans take an average of 200-500 years to fully degrade in a landfill.  With over 80,000,000,000 soda cans used per year one community can make an impact on how many are removed from the landfill and dropped off at the recycling pod.  

    The pod is easy to use.  Each bin is labeled for what items can go into which doors.  Use your smart phone to scan the QR code to unlock the bins.  The doors will unlock for 20 seconds so that you can drop in your items.  If you separate them before drop off it will make it so much easier to distribute and finish up.  My kids even got in on the action and worked to make sure we did not drop items into the wrong bin. 

    Glass is one of the items missing from this recycle pod so be sure to leave that at home.  Hopefully one day they will find a company partner who can recycle glass and almost nothing will enter the landfill.  The pods are self contained with solar panels on top to run the locks and the doors are light weight so it makes it easier to open when you have your hands full with recyclables.  

    Grab your items and head on over to the Walmart parking lot.  The bin is located close to the Highway 11 entrance that is right behind the gas station.  Easy to spot and easy to use, we hope that members of this community band together and make use of this great option for local recycling in our community.  

   

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Raspberry Peach Lemonade

 

    August is right around the corner, and for the month of August we will be featuring a Raspberry Peach Lemonade at the Tipsy Oak Lounge as our cocktail of the month.  We wanted to harness  more summer flavors to help everyone get ready for the start of the school year and ready themselves for the fall.  Being able to pull out all the joy and fun from summer is what life is all about.  We want to help you make that happen by creating a simple and delicious drink to enjoy on those summer evenings.  

    A great part of this drink, is that if you have leftover Mint Simple syrup from last months cocktail, you can use it again here in this drink to add a little sweetness to the tart of the lemons.  Since mint is our herb once again, that just makes it even sweeter. 

    We did utilize frozen fruit for this drink since, ironically we did not see any peaches at the store, during the time and location in which we went.  Raspberries last a little longer in frozen form than fresh.  I would recommend using fresh when you can to really pull the flavor and natural sweetness from the fruit.  

Raspberry Peach Lemonade

1 full peach, cut into chunks

1/4 cup Raspberries

1 cup water

2 lemons, cut and squeezed

1 ounce Mint Simple syrup

1 1/2 ounces Rum

Blend up the fruit and water into a puree.  Muddle mint at the bottom of shaker cup.  Squeeze two lemons into the shaker cup.  Add simple syrup, fruit puree, and rum.  Shake until mixed well.  Pour into an ice filled glass and garnish.  You can go all out with peach slices, raspberry and mint, or keep it simple with just mint. 

    This makes for a refreshing summer drink for the whole family.  Make a big batch and leave out the rum to let the kids and those not drinking liquor to enjoy as well.  The perfect summer mocktail for all.  As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver.  Until next month, Cheers from the Oaks bed and breakfast.  

Let's Eat Food Trucks ~ Taqueria Cabrera

 

    

    This week my foodie kid and I stopped in at the last food truck located at The Rail Yard.  Taqueria Cabrera, for some tacos, a quesadilla and churros.  The Taqueria Cabrera food truck has been open for just over a year and started their adventure over at Joe's convivence store before moving into the Rail Yard.  

    She likes the Rail Yard because of the location and how it is a bigger draw for families and people who want to hang out while they eat and wait for their food to be prepared.  With different games to be played, kids don't get too crabby waiting for food.  

   

They are open Tuesday - Friday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Closed on Sunday and Monday to rest, rejuvenate and gather supplies for the coming week.  Much of the food they make is from family recipes and from a taco spot in Dallas.  The brought a little bit of the city to the country.  They are mostly cash only, but do accept Zelle and CashAp, so bring those bills when you go to eat.  

    We ordered barbacoa, birria and asada tacos, along with a cheese quesadilla to try out.  At one point I tried their loaded nachos without meat as well, which were very similar to what you would order at a sporting event.  Each of the tacos was served with diced onions, cilantro and lime.  It's a must to add those items to your taco to be able to experience the full effect of the taco.  The Birria taco came with a sauce as well, which was pretty big and seemed a little much for one taco.  Maybe be sure to order a few, to make use of the sauce, or maybe we needed to have consumer instructions on that one.  

    They also offered us salsa to go with our food.  Of course we said yes and enjoyed both the green and the red sauce.  The red is spicy, which she told us of before we ate some.  Other wise we felt they both had a little kick and not much else.  The green sauce was a little creamier than the red sauce, and you could mostly just taste the heat.  

    The cheese quesadilla would have been even better with a little bit of Pico made into the middle of the quesadilla, but whatever left over onions, cilantro and lime he had from his tacos I scooped up with my bite of quesadilla.  

    Don't forget to order dessert.  The churros were hot and tasty.  Filled with a cinnamon sauce in the center, and the prefect doughy consistency to hit the spot for something a little sweet after your meal.  Be sure to stop by the Rail Yard and check out the blue truck by Taqueria Cabrera.  

Travel East Texas ~ Ham Orchards

 

    Ham Orchard has been operating in Terrell, Texas since 1979.  Located at 11939 County Road 309, Terrell, TX and open Monday - Saturday, from 9-5 p. m., from Mid May to Mid August.  We stopped by to purchase all things Peach.  We enjoyed peach soft served ice cream, fresh peaches and pulled pork with a peach glaze.  Ham Orchard has a beautiful farm stand that has all the summer, farm goodies you could think of.  

    From canned veggies to fresh veggies, there is something there for everyone one.  We brought home some fresh peaches that were melt in your mouth goodness, as well as some peach cinnamon rolls for breakfast in the morning.  You can also pick up a variety of baked goods and preserves. 

    Our peaches were barely made it home, before being devoured by all the kids.  The juicy sweetness of the peaches were just melt in your mouth goodness, you hated to see it end once you made it to the pit. All of our peaches were orange fleshed, instead of white and had that just picked flavor.

    All most all of the kids in our group enjoyed fresh peach or strawberry flavored soft served ice cream.  You could defiantly taste the fresh fruit made into each lick of the cone.  You could even swirl the two flavors together to get the best of both worlds. 

 

    After we perused the store, we made our way back outside to enjoy from fresh, cooked bar-b-que.  Since Peach is King, we had at least one order of Peach Pulled Pork.  Ribs and chicken were also a hit with our group.  Although my foodie kid was not the biggest fan of the peach pulled pork, and would have rather had general pulled pork, we made note of that for the future.  

    The only thing that might have made the trip even better would have been a pick your own variety of visit.  The kids would have had a blast selecting their own peaches from the trees.  Hopefully we can make it to the pick your own farm closer to home.  

    On the way back we did stop and visit with the Transformer protector, Bumblebee.  A life size replica is standing tall at a local gas station waiting for your stop and a photo or two.  If you happen to be a Geocacher, there is a cache located here as well as at the Orchard.  Enjoy the adventure to Ham Orchard and Bumblebee. 

Herb Infused Cocktail ~ Sparkling Cucumber Mint Gin

 

    We have another great refreshing summer drink for you to enjoy, using two of the most prolific items to be grown in summer.  Cucumber and mint!  Together they make great combination of flavors that are simply refreshing in this months herb infused cocktail from The Oaks bed and breakfast.  

    Simple to make yet refreshing to drink.  The use of Gin as the alcohol and the sparkling water are the perfect combination to quench your thirst on these hot Texas summer days.  The mint simple syrup ads a touch of sweetness that brings out the flavor of the mint throughout the drink.  We did make this one ourselves from the mint in the garden, so we know you can too.

    I'm sure there are easier ways to slice the cucumber very thinly, so if you figure that out let me know.  We just used a knife and made the cuts as thin as possible.  The use of a Collins glass makes the cucumber stand out, when lined against the glass.  

    Here is what we did to put this drink together. 

    Sparkling Cucumber Mint Gin

1 ounce lime juice

1 ounce mint simple syrup

2 ounce gin

3-4 ounce of sparking water of choice

Line your glass with thin sliced cucumber. Pour all of the liquid into a glass and stir to mix the flavors.  Top off the glass with ice.  Garnish with mint. 

    That's all there is to this months cocktail.  A very easy drink to mix as well as enjoy.  Grab those cucumbers slice them then and mix up some drinks for your next get together.  Of course you can always enjoy this months cocktail at the Tipsy Oak Lounge any Thursday - Saturday from 4-8 pm.  We will be more than happy to mix this drink for your enjoyment.  

    As always please drink responsibly and have a designated driver.  Until next months cocktail, Cheers!